


TinyQuisitor

by l8rose



Series: Inquisition What Ifs [1]
Category: DA:I, DAI - Fandom, Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, And the kid of the Warden from DA:O, Baby mage, Character Death, Child Inquisitor, Death, Growing Up, Growing up in Inquisition, Half elves have pointy ears, Not Canon Compliant, Other, Past Relationships, Problems abound, Ramblings, Random - Freeform, Referenced Death, What if the Inquisitor was a child?, developing magic, parental figures, sort of one shot, what if
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-13
Updated: 2018-02-13
Packaged: 2019-03-04 03:00:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13355091
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/l8rose/pseuds/l8rose
Summary: The Conclave has been destroyed, hundreds are dead and the world is faced with the threat of the Breach. The only known survivor is a... ten year old child?And not just any child but one that bears a startling resemblance to the long dead Hero of Ferelden.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Couldn't sleep so this random bit of writing came out. Basically a what if the only survivor, and Herald of Andraste, is a young child. 
> 
> Possibly will continue later but mostly just some random writing.

Cullen had hurried up from Haven just after the explosion rocked the surrounding area. He was filled with grief at the knowledge of how many had lost their lives inside the Temple for nothing remained of the large building but a few broken stones.

He could still feel the shake of the earth and see the ash rising into the air. For one terrifying moment, he was back in Kirkwall when the Chantry had exploded. A wave of nausea clung to him as he tried to focus past it.

He knew the same had been done here. That someone had once more murdered those who sought nothing but peace.

He had crested over the edge of a hill when there was a crack in the air and a flash of green light as if the very air tore to some hellish nightmare.

He swore to the maker as he shielded his eyes with the edge of his sword and swore again when he realized something stepped out of the green light.

Cullen watched as the tiny thing – something he realized was a child – slumped to the ground unconscious.

“Andraste preserve me…” He mumbled as he approached. He got close enough to get a good look at the child and he froze.

One look and he recognized the child. A young girl, no more then ten, perhaps even younger. Her hair was wrong colour, an almost coppery tinged blonde compared to the dark brown he remembered but there was no mistaking that tangle of hair or that nose or the spattering of freckles or any of the miniaturized features. There were enough differences that he knew it was not the woman he once knew but the similarity was downright frightening.

A mixture of emotions went through him like a runaway wagon. He remembered the circle mage he had been captivated with even though it had been years since he saw her last. Uldred had taken the tower and murdered or twisted those within. He had been the last templar to hold out even as demons taunted him with what he had desired most.

It had been years but he still remembered how he had reacted to her. How he had demanded that she kill every mage in the tower.

It had been years since he stood at her grave and begged forgiveness.

“Commander?” One of his soldiers questioned. “What… what do we do?”

The question snapped him out of his staring and he turned to his men. They all looked shaky, frightened and surprised; and he knew his place in this. He was their leader. There was no time to let indecision or confusion affect what decisions he had to make.

“Take her back to the Chantry.” He barked even as he tried to wrap his mind around what he had been looking at.

For sure as the temple was destroyed, he was certain he was looking at the child of hero of Ferelden.

A woman who had died nearly ten years before.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapters are short. Might put them together if I ever do continue this beyond my random moments.

Leliana could not believe her eyes when she saw the child they brought in.

There was no way that the tiny scrap of a being could be who she looked like.

It had to be an impossibility.

Still, it was her decision that had the child in better quarters then the dank cell that had been initially prepared. She would definitely have words with the soldiers for the failure to properly inform them that the person who stepped out of the rift was a child.

The words about how and what had been vastly exaggerated. Some were even blaming the child for the destruction of the chantry, practically demonizing the little girl.

That idea alone was absurd.

A child could not do what had been done and no child would want to do such any way.

“Excuse me, Lady Nightingale?” A soldier had brought her attention away from her thoughts. “Lady Cassandra has asked me to direct this uh… mage… to you.”

Beside him stood a bald elf, slightly taller then the average elf but looking every inch like a typical apostate. His clothing was patchwork, well worn and clearly repaired often. A jawbone of a wolf hung down his chest and he clutched a staff that could easily pass for a walking stick.

“Solas.” He said as if to clarify himself. “I wish to offer what help I can.”

Leliana regarded him calmly. She was suspicious of his sudden arrival but then she was suspicious of everyone. Now with the Conclave, and her most holiness, gone, there was even more reason to be suspicious. There was a lot a person could gain in the chaos that now befell Thedas.

“You are a mage?”

“An apostate.” He said with a nod, making no effort to hide that fact. The way he said it made it clear that he meant it more then just the state of affairs now. Perhaps the mage had never been a part of the circle as he certainly looked the part. “I had come to the Enclave to see what would happen but this…”

He did not need to motion to the sky to get his point across. Whatever happened in the sky was more then enough to get everyone worried. They had no idea what was happening other then something had destroyed the Chantry and murdered nearly everyone within.

A sky that looked like it was cracked open.

“Lady Nightingale!” Another soldier called from down the pathway, panic rising with each word. “Her condition worsens!”

“Understood.” Leliana said with a nod before turning back to this Solas. She eyed him critically before motioning for him to follow her. “With me.”

She did not trust him but right now, there was no one else. An apostate was better then nothing when anyone capable of healing had been murdered with the destruction of the Chantry. Not a single Chantry sister had survived, nor had any of the mages.

Leliana led the way to the small house. The inside had been cleared of nearly everything save for a small bed and a few chairs.  She led the apostate in and let him see what was before them.

The child who had stepped out of the rift lay there, unmoving and feverish. Her hair was a mass of tangles and lay out across her pillow in a haphazard fashion. A manacle bound one ankle to the bed but it was the hand that drew the attention.

Her hand sparked that same angry green as the sky above. Each time it sparked, the child flinched and thrashed on the bed.

“It’s… It’s a child.” Solas sounded startled before his voice changed to nearly insulted. “You would chain a child to a bed?”

“This child…” Leliana hated how she had to say that without the emotion she felt. She had to be distant, she could not look at this child and see the friend that had died so long ago. “This child is the only survivor of the Chantry and that thing—” She pointed to the child’s hand. “—is the same as the sky above. You are to keep her alive. She must be questioned.”

She did not care if he questioned her or felt that this was inhuman. They needed to be safe until answers could be found, even if she felt heartsick for what they had to do.

“I—” He started before bowing his head. “I understand.”

“Good.”

She turned and left him to whatever he needed to do, closing the door behind her as she exited the house.

“You and you.” She motioned to two nearby guards, first pointing at one and then the other. “You are to remain here at all times and you are to follow the elf within. Where he goes, you go. You are to remain inside and monitor him. Do not allow him to harm the child. Understood?”

They were about to question but the stern look quickly shut up any ideas of idle talk.

Leliana turned away and hurried to inform Cassandra of what she knew, even as she decided she needed to send Ravens to Kinloch for answers.

Andraste preserve her, she had no idea the Warden had family.


	3. Chapter 3

“A child?!” Cassandra’s voice warbled as she was caught between rage and indignation. “Who would bring a child to the Conclave?”

“Perhaps one of the vill—” Josephine started.

“She is not a child of one of the villagers.” Leliana said, cutting her off before she could continue. “Without a doubt, the child is the daughter of the Warden Surana.”

“Surana…? You mean…?” Josephine responded quickly, startled by the idea.

“The Hero of Ferelden, who stopped the blight.” Leliana answered.

“I do not recall her having a child in the stories.” Cassandra stated with a shake of her head. The idea of her having a child while trying to kill the archdemon was well outside any logical idea. Not only the struggles of combat but there was the rumor that the Wardens could not conceive.

“She did not.” Leliana shook her head as she spoke. “Where ever that child came from, it would be before she joined the Grey Wardens.”

“You are certain of that?” Josephine questioned her.

“Very much so.” Leliana responded, her arms crossing in front of her. “Surana was a Warden for a year. She told me that she had never been outside Kinloch Hold since she was a child. Beyond that, she was very tight lipped about her past in the Circle.”

“Kinloch? Wasn’t Cullen stationed there when he was younger?” Cassandra said.

“Yes,” Leliana nodded. “We encountered him while dealing with Uldred when the mage had gone mad and released demons into the Hold. Cullen was the only Templar who survived being inside the tower after it was sealed.”

“Perhaps he has some idea how this is possible?” Josephine asked.

“He might but he is in the field, dealing with the demons.” Cassandra responded, now determined to get the man alone and question him.

“I have arranged for ravens to be sent to Kinloch in the hopes that there is someone there who might have an idea of about this. I have… also sent one to Denerim.” Leliana said as she turned to look in the general direction of the ruins of the Temple.

“Denerim?” Josephine questioned.

“It was not widely known but the Warden and King Alistair… they were involved.” Leliana elaborated. “If this child truly is the daughter of Warden Surana, he will want to know.”

“You don’t think she’s his… do you?” Josephine suddenly questioned.

“Again, no.” Leliana said with a sigh. She clearly knew how scandalous that would be. Just a tad bit more then a circle mage having a child before they even had their proving. “Alistair and Surana were together but she died at the battle for Denerim. It was her blow that killed the Archdemon. In the year prior to that, she did not give birth to any child. Trust me, I would have known.”

Cassandra accepted Leliana’s answers but she could see the doubt in Josephine’s eyes. She knew that Josie would come around eventually. The woman was smart but the whole thing was far outside what could be considered normal.

This whole thing was far outside that. The death of Her Most Holy had been enough to throw the entire world into chaos and now their only suspect was a child.

The absurdity of it all was not lost on her.

“Lady Leliana!” A soldier ran in and realized he was face to face with all three of the Inquisition’s leaders. “The child is awake! And the mage asked me to retrieve you.”

“The mage?” Cassandra turned to Leliana with a questioning look before running for the door.

“An apostate arrived and offered help.” Leliana explained as she hurried to keep up.

“He is under guard, I hope.” Cassandra muttered under her breath as they hurried to the little house that was passing as the prison for the child.

“I am not that foolish.” Leliana said with an annoyed tone.

Cassandra pushed open the door to find the inside of the house in utter chaos.

The Apostate was standing near the bed with his hands in the air. His posture was clear that he was trying to calm the child who looked downright terrified.

The child stood on the bed, her brown eyes wide. She was looked the right height for a ten year old but she was thin. Perhaps a little too thin. The almost coppery gold hair was wild around her face but a pair of small not-quite-human ears peeked out from between strands.

She was clearly half elvhen which brought into further question her parentage. Warden Surana had indeed been an elf but it was obvious that the child had a human father.

The apostate was trying to say something to her in a calming fashion but the child spoke loudly over him.

“WHERE IS POPPY?!”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 24: Lullaby for Elfebruary
> 
> Apparently this was only ever saved as a draft and not actually posted to here... soooo just remedying that while I work on other stuff (and yes, still around and still not abandoning stuff, just been stupidly busy for the last few months).

Solas had come to the Conclave with a completely different intention but that had all changed. The humans had led him to a small building where a child lay unconscious.

He had been appalled at first to see the treatment of a child. A feeling that barely lessoned when it was explained that she was the only survivor of the Temple’s explosion. A closer examination, after the woman left, confirmed his worst fears.

There, imbedded firmly in the child’s hand, was the anchor for his orb. The energy crackled nearly all the way to her shoulder.

He debated on his course of action before removing the manacle that bound her to the bed. No child deserved the fate that was coming but he could at least let her be comfortable. Or as comfortable as she could manage given the circumstances that had now befallen her.

“ _Da’len_.” He spoke softly in elvhen as he tended to her hand. He did what he could to ease her pain but he was filled with guilt and regret over this. The words he was about to say quickly turned into a lullaby as if that would help in this moment. “ _Elgar valla, da’len, melava somniar…”_

It was one thing to kill someone from a distance, it was another to look at someone and see them suffer because of his own actions. He had never intended to make anyone suffer in his goals but here was this child tortured by his magic. Her life had now been shortened considerably.

There were two options to deal with the anchor.

The first was to simply kill the child and release it. That was something that he knew he could not do. The anchor would return to the orb and the world would suffer for it. Had he the orb in hand, then he probably would have released her from her pain but he did not have it.

The other was simply to ease her suffering for as long as he could. He knew that was the only option as it would buy him time. Time he needed to figure out how to stop his mistake.

“ _Mala taren aravas, ara ma’desen melar._ ” He continued to half whisper the lullaby as he willed the mark to ease. His power was enough that he could control it enough that it lessoned but his long sleep had reduced him greatly.

He knew that this mark could close the Breach - and any rift that had spawned from it - but he was still uncertain how he felt about it being stuck to a child. The anchor would need to be powered up beyond what it was now. The idea of forcing a child into such a role was appalling to him.

“ _Ira ma ghilas, da’len_.” He smoothed her hair away from her face and examined her features.

He guessed she was young, perhaps close to adulthood but it was hard to tell with how slim she was. There was a look that spoke of hard times. Not quite starvation but moments where she did not get all a child should. Her skin spoke of time in the sun and further hampered his guess at her age.

The most important thing was that he could tell that she had elvhen blood. It was so far removed from his people but it called to him enough that he looked for the other traits of a half-elvhen.

Her ears were not quite like those of his people but they were not quite human either. He could see the shape of the elvhen in her cheeks and her chin but then, a person could find a lot of similarities if they looked hard enough.

A sudden spark of energy from her hand brought his attention back to the anchor. Again, he felt that sense of regret that a child would suffer this. That mark had wound itself firmly into the very core of her being.

“ _Ara me’ne-“_ He faltered when he felt her jolt away from him.

 He glanced back to her face to find a pair of very deep brown eyes staring back at him. The eyes were decidedly elvhen but they were vivid and full of terror.

“Quickly,” Solas said over his shoulder to the solder that stood on the other side of the small cottage. “Go fetch your leader.”

“Who? Where?” The child demanded before scuttling back away from him.

“Easy, da’len.” He said softly, pulling his hands back to himself in what he hoped was a non-threatening manner. “I am a friend.”

“Where am I?!” She demanded with all the ferocity of a child.

“You’re safe. This is the village of Haven.” Solas answered.

He had learned the name from the people he had encountered on his way here. This was the village where pilgrims rested before continuing to the Temple of Sacred Ashes.

“Haven?” She had gotten to her feet, wobbling but managing to keep from toppling over.

Solas raised his hands in an effort to catch her should she suddenly fall.

“Yes, Haven.” He answered. “You were at the Temple and were brought here by the soldiers.”

“The Temple?” Her face crinkled into a frown and those big brown eyes had become glassy. “We were going… where’s Poppy?”

He did not know who this person was but he assumed that they had been lost in the explosion that had claimed so many others. He did not want to be the one to tell her that everyone who had stepped into the Temple was now dead. It was something he planned on leaving up to the ones leading this little group.

Right on cue, those people bust in just as the child’s voice raised far louder then anything he tried to say.

“WHERE IS POPPY?!”

Flame erupted from the child’s hand, her fingers wreathed in fire. That fire crackled in sync with the mark on her other hand. There was a brief moment where she looked utterly terrifying, like some miniature arcane warrior from ancient Elvhenan.

Then the stress of the mark and the magic had her slumping forward. Solas managed to catch the child before she tumbled off the bed. The shock had sent the child back into unconsciousness.

His own magic reaching forward to snuff out the flames before it dealt too much damage to anything in the room.

He glanced over at the new arrivals as the woman, the Nightingale Leliana, moved closer to the bed.

“Well, that explains why she was brought to the Conclave.” Leliana’s voice was low as she regarded the child.

“I don’t follow.” The darker skinned woman asked.

“She’s a mage.” Said a woman wearing the garb of the Seekers. “Or at least just wakening into her own powers.”

Solas understood it easily enough. This child must have just developed their powers and were brought to the only place where people knew there would be mages.

Pity welled up inside him as he knew they had sent her here in hopes that she would find some safe haven but now she may very well be the key to saving all of Thedas.

He knew she was the one thing that could help him retrieve his orb.

He just had no idea how a child was going to help with that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mir Da'len Somniar 
> 
> Elgara vallas, da'len - Sun sets, little one,  
> Melava somniar - Time to dream  
> Mala taren aravas - Your mind journeys,  
> Ara ma'desen melar - But I will hold you here.
> 
> Iras ma ghilas, da'len - Where will you go, little one  
> Ara ma'nedan ashir - Lost to me in sleep?
> 
> The rest can be found online if folks wanted to look it up.


End file.
